SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · RHODE ISLAND
Tropical Smoothie Cafe franchise in Rhode Island: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Tropical Smoothie Cafe in Rhode Island have taken 5 SBA loans in the FY1991–present FOIA files (average $342,000). Fewer than 30 of them were approved through FY2020 and have resolved, so no local loss ratio is published. Tropical Smoothie Cafe's national ratio is 0.8× (not clearly different from 1.0×). Its latest FDD Item 20 state table reports 7 franchised outlets in Rhode Island (fiscal 2025) — about 0.63 per 100k residents.
Loans in RI
5
Charged off (all years)
0 of 2
Loss ratio in RI
—
Loss ratio nationally (not clear)
0.8×
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = RI. Loss ratio = charge-offs among loans approved through FY2020 ÷ the charge-offs expected if each had defaulted at the national rate for franchise loans approved the same year; 1.0× is the same. Only charged-off and paid-in-full loans count. A ratio is shown at 30+ such loans; “not clear” marks a ratio chance alone could produce. The all-years count mixes every era and is evidence, not a rate to compare. Borrowers are matched to the brand by name and SBA franchise code; some matches may be wrong or missing.
Businesses in this industry
2,555
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
229.7
national 179.9
Versus the country
+28%
denser
Every business in Tropical Smoothie Cafe's industry operating in Rhode Island — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across the brand-state cells in the loan data, denser markets have historically charged off less often than the thinnest (see the research page). A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.
Avg weekly wage, this industry
$568
Rhode Island, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$537
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+6%
costlier to staff
What Tropical Smoothie Cafe's industry actually pays workers in Rhode Island, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This cost signal is independent of the FDD: a market can look demand-rich above and still carry a margin headwind here if local wages run hot for the sector.
| Fiscal year | Franchised | Company-owned |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 0 | — |
| 2014 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 0 | — |
| 2023 | 3 | — |
| 2024 | 5 | — |
| 2025 | 7 | — |
| System | Loans in RI | Charged off (all years) | Loss ratio in RI | Units in RI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subway | 61 | 3 of 57 | 0.3× | 50 |
| Honey Dew Donuts | 18 | 3 of 15 | — | — |
| Domino's Pizza | 10 | 0 of 9 | — | — |
| Dunkin' | 8 | 0 of 6 | — | — |
| Blimpie | 7 | 1 of 6 | — | — |
| Sonic Drive-In | 6 | — | — | — |
| JERSEY MIKE'S | 5 | — | — | 15 |
| Quiznos | 5 | 3 of 5 | — | — |
| Saladworks | 5 | 0 of 1 | — | — |
Other systems in Tropical Smoothie Cafe's sector whose franchisees borrowed in Rhode Island. A loss ratio appears only where at least 30 loans approved through FY2020 have resolved; “—” means too few.
A broker is usually paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid only by you, never by a franchisor you're considering — and the job is pressure-testing Tropical Smoothie Cafe’s numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.